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Side by side

Design Essentials Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo vs John Frieda Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo

85% function match · 10 of the 13 functions we compared match Formula overlap 50%. Design Essentials Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo and John Frieda Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo share 4 ingredients among each other's most prominent.

Based on your consultation

Which of these fits your hair?

We check your pattern, moisture need, scalp, fragrance tolerance, weight sensitivity and more against each formula — and say which one lines up.

Your profile at a glance

  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here

When each one is the right call

What each formula is built for, from its own ingredient list.

  • Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo — fast-oiling scalps
  • Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo — protein-sensitive hair

Side by side

Every trait, aligned

One row per trait, read from each product’s own ingredient list and record. A dash means we have not researched that field for that product — it is not a “no”.

Price, size & price per ounce
$19.99 32 oz · $0.63/oz
$13–15 8.3 oz · $1.63/oz

Compared at different sizes — 32 oz against 8.3 oz. Per-ounce prices favour the larger bottle.

Value / price positioning
Lower cost than most shampoos $$$$$ Salon tier · costs less than 83% of the 817 shampoos we’ve priced
Upper-mid price for a shampoo $$$$$ Drugstore tier · costs more than 54% of the 817 shampoos we’ve priced
Best for hair types
All types Nothing in the formula or the claims narrows this to one pattern. Your hair
All types Nothing in the formula or the claims narrows this to one pattern. Your hair
Moisture level Same
High Humectants near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here. Your hair
High Humectants near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here. Your hair
Cleansing strength Same
Strong Removes oil, buildup, and most residue — a reset wash. Your hair
Strong Removes oil, buildup, and most residue — a reset wash. Your hair
Slip / detangling Differs
High Conditioning agents sit high in the list — this is a detangling formula. Your hair
Moderate Conditioning agents are present, lower in the list. Your hair
Weight on hair
Medium Middle of the range — noticeable on fine hair, light on coarse hair. Your hair
Light Water-first and light: unlikely to flatten fine hair. Your hair
Fragrance
Present Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients. Your hair
Prominent Fragrance sits in the first eight ingredients — a larger share of the formula. Your hair
Protein Differs
Prominent Protein high in the list — a strengthening formula, not a moisture one. Your hair
None No protein or amino acids in the list. Your hair
Silicone / wax buildup Same
Low The silicones here are the water-soluble kind. Your hair
Low The silicones here are the water-soluble kind. Your hair
Clarifying wash needed
Low Your hair
Low Your hair
Expected lather Same
High Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair. Your hair
High Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair. Your hair
Scalp active Same
None No over-the-counter scalp active. Your hair
None No over-the-counter scalp active. Your hair
Hard-water defence Same
Chelators present Chelators are present — they bind hard-water and pool minerals. Your hair
Chelators present Chelators are present — they bind hard-water and pool minerals. Your hair
Formula completeness
out of 10
Complete for its job
out of 10
Complete for its job
Who should choose this
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Protein-hungry hairthat stretches and stays stretched when wet
  • Maximum slipfor hair that tangles the moment it is wet
  • Hard waterand swimmers dealing with mineral deposit
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Hard waterand swimmers dealing with mineral deposit
  • Fine hairthat flattens under most products
Why you might skip it
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Sulfate-free routinesit uses a sulfate detergent
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat goes stiff or straw-like on protein
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Sulfate-free routinesit uses a sulfate detergent
  • Very dry or damaged hairit contains fast-drying alcohol
from the formula stated by the brand reported by reviewers Scale: 1 dot low · 5 dots high, within this product type.
More facts about each one
Type
Shampoo
Shampoo
Line
Milk & Honey
Radiant Red
Where to buy
Brand website · Salons
Brand website · Target
Free of
  • protein-free
Vegan
Not vegan · ingredient list
Vegan · label states
Cruelty-free
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Scent
Sweet & vanilla
Sweet & vanilla

Facts as we recorded them. A dash means we have not researched that field for that product — it is not a "no".

The bottom line

The bottom line depends on your hair

Which of these two suits you is a question about your hair, not about them. The consultation answers it — and tells you what your routine needs around it.

Take the consultation

$49.00 once, for your consultation and hair profile. No subscription, no required purchases.

The detail behind the table

Where the readings above come from: the ingredient lists themselves, each brand’s claims checked against them, what owners report, and cost per ounce in context.

Shared and distinct ingredients

Shared and distinct ingredients

Computed from the ingredient lists as printed. "Shared" means both lists carry it; where it sits on each label is stated, because position is what tells you how much.

What both formulas carry

IngredientMilk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning ShampooRadiant Red Boosting Shampoo
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleanses
#2Leading
#2Leading
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleanses
#3Leading
#4Supporting
Citric Acid
pH balancer
#7Below the 1% line
#33Below the 1% line
PEG-12 Dimethicone
Shine
#17Below the 1% line
#18Below the 1% line
Fragrance
Fragrance
#23Below the 1% line
#7Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Full ingredient list — Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo (24)
Full ingredient list — Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo (42)

Claims check

What each brand says, against what each formula shows

Claims are quoted from each brand. We only mark one supported, partly supported, or conflicting when that product’s ingredient list actually speaks to it.

VerdictsMilk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning ShampooRadiant Red Boosting Shampoo
Supported
0
1
Partly supported
0
0
Stated by brand
1
2
Potential conflict
0
0

Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo

  • Cleanse, balance, and condition in one step with this professional-grade neutralizing shampoo made to protect hair after chemical services.Stated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo

  • Recharge your redStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Gently protects, preserves & enhances red shades to extend the life of your red colorStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Vegan, Cruelty FreeSupportedMatches our researched record.

What owners say

What people report

Recurring themes our researchers wrote in their own words from sourced reviews. We do not store or scrape star ratings, and we never balance one product’s themes against another’s by inventing them.

Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo

Reviewers consistently describe hair as clean, soft, and moisturized after use, with several noting the product works well across multiple hair types within one household

Long-time users (some citing decades of use) report consistent satisfaction and repeat purchase, especially among stylists using it as a professional neutralizing step

professional/stylist reviewers noted repeat/long-term use

Efficient lather: reviewers note a little product goes a long way and it lathers easily

Fragrance/scent is repeatedly called out as a standout positive, often the first thing reviewers mention

Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo

Reviewers with red-dyed hair report it helps color last noticeably longer between salon visits versus a plain shampoo

reviewers who color their hair red at home or in-salon

Paired use with the matching Radiant Red conditioner is frequently cited as part of what keeps hair feeling good and color vibrant

Several reviewers say the shampoo visibly deposits or intensifies red tone, contradicting the brand's non-depositing marketing framing; some found the resulting shade darker/more saturated than expected

reviewers with previously color-treated red hair

Price check

Cost per ounce, in context

Cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced, each at the size it is most often sold in. Value labels are computed from that percentile and from how many products that do the same job cost less; they are comparisons, not judgements about a brand.

$0.63/oz vs $1.63/oz — John Frieda Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo costs about 2.6× more per ounce than Design Essentials Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo.

$0.00/oz median $1.48/oz $17.29/oz $0.63/oz Milk & Honey Neutralizing $1.63/oz Radiant Red Boosting Shamp

Every mark sits on one distribution because these are compared against the same set: 817 shampoos with a computable unit price.

Value readMilk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning ShampooRadiant Red Boosting Shampoo
Label
Lower cost than most shampoosCosts less per ounce than most shampoos we have researched.
Upper-mid price for a shampooSits in the middle of the range for shampoos per ounce.

Computed from cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced, and from how many products that do the same job cost less. It is a comparison, not a judgement about the brand.

Compare with something else

Close formulas to each of these, as their own comparison pages.

Milk & Honey Neutralizing Conditioning Shampoo · Radiant Red Boosting Shampoo · All shampoos in the library

How this page was made

  • This page is assembled from the same researched records the individual product pages render: identity, each ingredient list as printed, each brand's own claims, dated price observations, and review themes written in our researchers' own words. Nothing on it is written per comparison.
  • We do not rank these against each other. Which of them suits you depends on your hair, and that is what the consultation works out.
  • The formula similarity percentage is a stored, precomputed number: position-weighted overlap of the two ingredient lists blended with agreement on the attributes we derive. It measures how alike two formulas are, not how well either works.
  • The value band is a fixed label over two stored numbers: this product’s cost per ounce as a percentile of every product of this type we have priced, each at the size it is most often sold in, and how many products we score as doing the same job cost at least a quarter less per ounce.
  • The "Is this right for you?" panel reads only your own consultation answers, and it applies exactly the filters our recommendation engine applies. It is computed when you load the page and is never stored on it.
  • 10 sources were consulted across the products on this page.
  • Ingredient order tells you relative amount only above roughly 1%. Prices are observations on the dates shown and change without notice. We do not sell these products and take no placement fees.
  • This is cosmetic information, not medical advice, and nothing here diagnoses or treats a health condition.

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